Teacher Feedback in the Learning Process
Teacher feedback has traditionally been a normal part of the teacher-students relationship in the learning process. This is primarily because feedback is widely acknowledged as a significant part of the learning cycle. Despite the significance of teacher feedback in the learning process, few studies have focused on examining whether university teachers and students value feedback differently. Actually, teachers and students have often expressed their frustrations and dissatisfaction on how the feedback process is carried out. The frustrations and disappointment has in turn acted as a sign of the differences in how university teachers and students value feedback in different ways. In light of this fact as well as findings on student-centered research, it is quite evident that university teachers and students value feedback in different ways.
Importance of Teacher Feedback
As previously mentioned, teacher feedback has long been an important and usual component of the relationship between teachers and students. Teacher feedback is generally described as the information provided by teachers regarding students' understanding or performance in the learning process (Rowe, 2010, p.343). Consequently, teacher feedback is an important component in the learning process since it is a platform through which students obtain significant information regarding their understanding in order to enhance their performance. In essence, feedback is a vital element in teacher-students relationship because it acts as a guide through which students can obtain good results and enhance performance.
Generally, teachers provide feedback to students through various means such as feedback on assessment, feedback on performance, and feedback on behavior. This implies that teachers adopt a multifaceted approach towards providing essential information to students by examining the various issues and areas that may affect students' performance and results in the classroom. When provided adequately and through proper channels, teacher feedback plays a crucial role as a direct help to the learning process by...
While feedback is generally viewed as a means for improved academic performance through gaining better understanding of ideas and concepts, the perceptions of teachers and students regarding feedback vary significantly. In the past few years, teachers and students have increasingly complained that the conduct of the feedback process does not necessarily result in improved students' performance. These complaints have largely been expressed as disappointments and frustrations, which have affected the impact of feedback on the learning process. According to the findings of a recent study by Vanderbilt University, feedback does not usually assist students largely because of these disappointments and frustrations (Tatter, 2015).
Students have increasingly viewed feedback as unclear or unhelpful because it is sometimes demoralizing. While teachers strive to ensure that their feedback helps improve students' engagement in the learning process, it does not necessary improve subsequent students' performance because students do not receive guidance on how to utilize the feedback towards better academic results (Spiller, 2009). In some situations, students have reported that feedback is offered too late for any significant use or relevance in the learning process. The other reason for students' negative perception about feedback is that it sometimes draws attention to students' self-image and performance. In this case, it affects performance by acting as a distraction that undermines students' efforts and denying them the opportunity to understand course concepts and ideas on their own.
On the contrary, teachers have increasingly reported that students do not seem interested in feedback and are increasingly focused with the mark. University teachers state that students do not view feedback as important in the overall learning process and…
